There have been magic numbers for the Rangers this season, as in the 68 and 30 that adorn the uniform backs of Jaromir Jagr and Henrik Lundqvist, respectively; as in the 53 that represents the single-season franchise record for goals in a season that Jagr established Saturday in Boston.
But the Rangers had another magic number going into last night’s match against the Devils at the Meadowlands, and that was 6 – as in the magic number for clinching the Atlantic Division title and the playoff first-round home ice that’s the most tangible reward of finishing in first place.
That was 6 – as in any combination of points earned by the Rangers and points lost by the Flyers. And following a Saturday on which the Rangers beat the Bruins while the Flyers lost at home to the suddenly capable Maple Leafs, the Blueshirts may well be able to clinch their seventh first-place finish ever (1926-27, 1931-32, 1941-42, 1989-90, 1990-91, 1993-94) before their visit to Philadelphia on Saturday.
Indeed, regardless of the Flyers’ fortunes against the Penguins on Tuesday and at New Jersey on Thursday, the Rangers would go into Philadelphia as champions by sweeping this week – last night’s game; at home tomorrow night against the Islanders; and then Thursday night in Pittsburgh.
First place is not only its own reward – has there been a less expected division championship since the Mets won the NL East in 1969? – but clinching it early brings a whole slew of positive benefits, the most important of which is the flexibility it would allow Tom Renney for Saturday in Philly and the season finale against Ottawa at the Garden a week from tomorrow night.
The Rangers had won three straight and five of the last six prior to their match against the Devils – a conceivable firstround opponent – but they’ve appeared tired and frayed at the edges. They’re neither been thinking nor executing crisply. They need a break – and as badly as they need to finish in first place, quite frankly.
Renney has repeatedly talked about the juggling act of going for first and preparing for the playoffs, often suggesting the two are not mutually exclusive concepts. But the head coach has acknowledged the importance of giving his fatigued athletes a rest. With a clinching in reach this week and the playoffs not set to begin until April 21, Renney and the Rangers could be looking at the best of both worlds.
“We’ll make decisions on resting people based on the best interests of the entire hockey team,” Renney said before last night’s game. “One area we want to stay on top of is the fitness of our players and our team. We don’t want to give anything up in that regard.
“We think our fitness level is one of our greatest assets. So we’d want to make certain that anything we don’t do on the ice during games we’re able to cover on off-days.”
While Renney was dealing with hypotheticals, Kevin Weekes was in nets last night for the fourth consecutive game as Lundqvist rehabbed his sore hip-flexor. The injury has been a blessing for the Rangers, who were able to get Weekes necessary confidence-building action prior to the playoffs while at the same time providing Lundqvist with necessary rest.
Experiencing the joy of six prior to next Saturday would only bring more blessings to Broadway’s team.